Not just another acronym

The Rand Club…in jeans

Yesterday I had lunch at the Rand Club as a guest of the City of Joburg…wearing jeans…oops! Anyways they didn’t seem to mind too much about that although I did get a few snooty looks from some of the members, either that or their caviar smelt funny.

I thought since the Club is always seen as this ‘secret society’ and only a few are ever lucky enough to get a peek inside I would snap a million photos to show you guys. Alan Lambert, Food and Beverages Manager at the club was kind enough to take me on a quick tour of the club and impart some of his extensive knowledge of its history, I even got to relax for five seconds in the Library, which is not only the coolest room in the entire building but also the Clubs pride and joy.

The most beautiful skylight set in the biggest entrance hall ever. And the stained glass is all made in SA!

The library dates back to when the Club was opened and contains over 10 000 books.

The Club is filled with awesome little details like this: a row of shelves in the library has been cleared so you can put your feet up and relax.

Would love to get my nose stuck into some of these.

Shot of the library from the door.

The Club has an entire hall for snooker…it does happen to be lined with the heads of various animals so it’s a little creepy.

Perhaps my favorite part of the whole tour/lunch was the story of Rudyard Kipling and the Rand Club which apparently inspired his poem If.

You got into the Rand Club in jeans!? I’ve visited a few times with a friend who is a member there and find it quite fascinating. He’s had some great parties there and they also organise some interesting tours of the area. I agree with you about the animal heads …

If you can, speak to Mr Sander, he is the club’s historian and walking through the building with him is an incredible experience. When the vote to let women in the club was tabled a good friend of mt father’s voted vehemently against it. His wife was the first female member of the club.